Ball-playing apparatus.



W. LAMMERSEN. BALL PLAYING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 2a, 1908.

Patented Mar. 1, 1910.

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WILLIAM LAMMERSEN, DE LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

BALL-PLAYING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 23, 1908. Serial No. 440,006.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM LAMMERSEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful Ball-Playing Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a ball playing apparatus consisting of means for catching and driving a ball in games of various kinds.

An object of the invention is to provide a novel apparatus composed of two simple parts, one for each hand of the player, whereby the player may by the part held in one hand catch a ball while the same is either stationary or is rolling and may place the ball in any playing position, and then by the part held in the other hand may drive the ball as desired with maximum accuracy.

Further objects of the invention are cheapness, simplicity, lightness, efiiciency, and adaptability for use with various sized balls.

The invention in some of its features is capable of embodiment in various forms, and I do not limit the invention to any specific form.

The invention includes the appliance, the parts and combination of parts and the specific features of construction set forth in the snbjoined, detailed description.

The ball catching and holding part may be constructed entirely of a single piece of spring wire, or the head of said part may be constructed of a single piece of wire fastened to a wooden handle. In the accompanying drawings this latter form of construction will be shown as the invention will be fully understood therefrom. The construction of said ball catching and holding part, however, is not limited to the specific form shown.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a ballplaying apparatus constructed in accordance with this invention. Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmental side elevation of the same in use. A portion is shown in section. Fig. 3 is a fragmental plan of the ball catching and holding part. Fig. 4 is a section on line oa -w, Figs. 1 and 9.. Fig. 5 is a section on line indicated by 00 Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 6 is a detached view of the head of the ball catching and holding part. Fig. 7 is a detached view of a portion of the under face of the handle of the ball catching and holding part. Fig. 8 is a detached view of a portion of the upper face of the handle of the ball catching and holding part. Fig. 9 is a side view of the lower end of the cue.

In the drawings a is the ball catching and holding part, 7) the one or ball-driving part, and c a ball. The ball catching and holding part a is provided with two U-shaped resilient prongs 1, 2, which are fastened to the end of a handle 3 and extend parallel to each other for a distance to form a straight guide-way 4 from said handle forwardly, and then diverge from each other to form jaws 5, 5, between which a ball (1 returning from any form of returning device not shown, may be caught, or by which a stationary ball may be caught by sudden forward movement of the part a; the inertia of the ball in any instance serving to seat the ball in the ways on the inner faces of the resilient prongs. In the form shown, said ways are formed by the parallel limbs of the U-shaped prong.

The one 6 is composed of a handle 6 provided at one end with a tongue 7 between two oblique faces or shoulders 8 on the opposite sides of said tongue. The U-shaped prongs of the part a may be formed of a single wire bent upon itself in the nature of four limbs extending alongside each other, said limbs being arranged in approximately parallel pairs to form the loops 1 and 2 respectively, and said loops being connected by a bend or bight 9 adjacent the terminals 10, 10 of the wire. Said terminals may be seated in grooves 11 in the opposite sides of the handle 5-3, and the bight 9 may be brought against an adjacent side of said handle 3. The terminals 10 and the bight 9 may all be secured to the end of the handle by a suitable band 12. This band may be of any desired form. In the drawings it is shown in the form of a winding of wire or other suitable ligament to firmly hold the terminals and bight in position on the handle. The terminals 10 may be bent at right angles to enter a hole 13 bored through the handle 3. 15 formed by the limbs of the U-shaped loops converge rearwardly as clearly seen in Fig. 2, so that the same may adapt themselves to grip balls of different diameters; the pressure on the ball increasing as the ball recedes Patented Mar. 1, 1910.

The shanks 14, Y

from the front of the part a. The grooves in the end of the handle 3 of the part a are arranged aslant so that when the head of the said part a is fastened therein said head may lie full length upon a plain surface while the handle is aslant to give room for the hand of the operator between the handle and the surface upon which the ball may roll.

In practical use the player will catch the ball either by placing the prongs in position to receive the rolling ball between the converging jaws, or by giving the part a a sudden forward movement to bring the jaws into engagement with the ball, whereupon the inertia of the ball will cause the ball to become wedged in the space between the four limbs of the resilient shanks of the head. Then the tongue of the cue may be inserted between the shanks, and the cue forced forward by the player to cause the tongue thereof to strike the ball, thus casting the ball from the straight runway formed between the shanks or the prongs. The ball may thus be directed with considerable accuracy in a line with the cue and the handle of the part a, thus enabling the player to strike an object more unerringly than without the use of the device. The faces 8 of the cue rest on and slide along the top of the prongs, and the straight guide-way gives true direction to the ball.

I claim:

1. In a ball-playing apparatus, the combination of a handle, resilient prongs mounted on the handle and having diverging forward ends and approximately parallel shanks, and another handle provided with a tongue movable along between said shanks to drive a ball and also provided with shoulders at the upper side of the tongue to engage and travel along the shanks.

2. In a ball-playing apparatus, the combination of an instrument provided with resilient prongs adapted to receive a ball between them and another instrument co1npris ing a one having a tongue movable along between the prongs to impel a ball, and also having shoulders resting on the prongs to support the tongue.

3. A ball. catching and holding device provided with two U-shaped prongs formed of wire loops, a portion of each prong being formed of rearwardlyconverging limbs adapted to receive a ball, the shanks of said prongs beingparallel with each other for a distance between the converging limbs and the handle. 7

4. A ball catching and holding device co1nprising a handle and two resilient prongs attached thereto, the forward ends of said prongs being divergent from each other and the shanks of said prongs being parallel with each other and composed of rearwardly-converging limbs fastened to the handle.

5. A ball catching'and holding device comprising a handle provided at its front end with slanting grooves, a head formed of a wire seated in said slanting grooves and comprising two prongs in the form of loops, and a band securing a bight of said wire and also the ends of the wire in said grooves.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 15th day of June 1908.

VVIL'LIAM LAMMERSEN.

In presence of" JAMES R. TOWNSEND, M. BEULAH TOWNSEND. 

